Last Wednesday, the Alabama Senate Health Committee gave a favorable report to legislation allowing mothers who lost a child due to miscarriage can receive a state-issued birth certificate, called a “Certificate of Nonviable Birth.”
House Bill 55 (HB55) is sponsored by State Representative Juandalynn Givan.
“I had a mother come up to me at a town hall and ask me to carry this,” Givan said. “And then another mother, and another mother.”
Senator Tim Melson – a medical doctor – chairs the Senate Health Committee.
Melson asked when the cutoff date on this is.
Givan said that in some states, it was five weeks. In others, seven weeks. This bill currently doesn’t have one.
Melson said there would be tissue to verify that there was a pregnancy and that they could work on this before it came to the floor of the Senate.
Sen. Larry Stutts said, “This is the most pro-life bill I have seen.”
Givan had photos of what a fetus looks like at less than twenty weeks.
Stutts said that those pictures show that this is a life that is worthy of protection.
“I want to thank you for bringing this bill,” said Sen. Dan Roberts.
Givan said that if this bill passes, she wanted it named the “Genesis Act.”
After 20 weeks of gestation, a parent can request a nonviable birth certificate from the Health Department. This bill would extend that to pregnancies that were lost before that current deadline.
“Florida was the first state to pass this,” Givan explained.
According to the synopsis, “Under existing law, a nonviable birth that occurs before the twentieth week of gestation is not reported to the Office of Vital Statistics, and a parent of a nonviable birth that occurs before the twentieth week of gestation may not request a certificate of birth. Also, under existing law, a parent of a fetal death occurring after 20 weeks of gestation may request a Certificate of Birth Resulting in Stillbirth. This bill would create the Genesis Act to require the Alabama Department of Public Health to adopt rules allowing for the parents of a nonviable birth occurring before the twentieth week of gestation to request a Certificate of Nonviable Birth.”
The Senate Health Committee voted unanimously to give HB55 a favorable report. HB55 could be considered by the full Alabama Senate as early as Tuesday. The legislation has already passed the House of Representatives.
As of Friday, 680 bills have been filed thus far in the 2023 Alabama Regular Legislative Session.
Tuesday will be Day 16 of the 2023 regular session. The Alabama Constitution limits the regular session to no more than thirty legislative days during a regular session.
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email brandonmreporter@gmail.com.
